Pellet-fired BBQ

ABSTRACT

A pellet-fired cooking apparatus is provided. The cooking apparatus may include an outer shell into which are mounted at least a fuel support member and a food support member. Pellet fuel may be placed on the fuel support member and may be used to cook food placed on the food support member. The fuel support member may have a construction that allows for controlled combustion of the pellet fuel, providing for desired cooking characteristics of the pellet fuel. Intake air for combustion may be provided to the pellet fuel through one or more hollow supports for the cooking apparatus.

CROSS-REFERENCES

No provisional patent application was filed for the subject matter ofthis disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

Barbecue grills or stoves are a popular way to prepare food away fromthe kitchen of a home. Typically, barbecue grills or stoves include arelatively open food support over a heat source, such as a collection ofcharcoal briquettes. The open food support, or grill, is commonlyconstructed of a number of horizontally disposed, parallel elementsconnected to a frame. In cases where charcoal briquettes are used as theheat source, those briquettes, too, may be supported on an open grill.Alternatively, the briquettes may rest upon a bottom surface of a shellmaking up the body of the barbecue grill or stove.

The barbecue grill described above may be sufficient for cooking foodover a collection of charcoal briquettes. However, the describedbarbecue grill may not be adequate for producing heat at a high level ina short period of time, or for utilizing a pellet fuel source. Asanother potential drawback, charcoal briquettes used in a conventionalbarbecue grill in the described manner may stay hot for several hoursafter their intended usage period, making clean-up a difficultproposition.

A barbecue grill as described in the present disclosure overcomes theflaws inherent in the prior art by providing a barbecue grill suitablefor using a pellet fuel for cooking foodstuffs in an efficient manner.Such a pellet-fueled barbecue grill may provide sufficient heat forcooking in a very short period of time, and may allow the pellet fuel tocool in a much shorter time than occurs in a conventional barbecuegrill.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

The present disclosure provides a pellet-fired barbecue for cooking foodusing heat produced by combustion of a pellet fuel. The pellet-firedbarbecue may include a standard, narrow-gauge wire food support and afuel support, both encompassed within the barbecue grill body. The fuelsupport may be a substantially solid structure, having a minimum of openspace; such a configuration may provide for a controlled burn of apellet fuel used as a heat source for cooking food in the barbecue. Avariety of configurations of the fuel support may be used for a varietyof different pellet fuels. Air used in the combustion of a pellet fuelin the barbecue grill may enter the grill through one or more supportsof the barbecue.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a cutaway side view of a first embodiment of a pellet-firedbarbecue.

FIG. 2 is a cutaway perspective view of an interior space of the firstembodiment of a pellet-fired barbecue.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of an interior space of the first embodiment of apellet-fired barbecue, with a food support and a fuel support remove

FIG. 4 shows an exemplary fuel support for use in a pellet-firedbarbecue of the type disclosed.

FIG. 5 is a cutaway side view of a second embodiment of a pellet-firedbarbecue.

FIG. 6 is a cutaway perspective view of an interior space of the secondembodiment of a pellet-fired barbecue.

FIG. 7 is a plan view of an interior space of the second embodiment of apellet-fired barbecue, with a food support and a fuel support removed.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a barbecue grill 10, thebarbecue being designed according to the details of the presentdisclosure. In an illustrated embodiment, barbecue grill 10 maytypically be constructed with a grill body 20 formed from at least firstand second shell portions 21, 22. In an embodiment where the shellincludes more than one shell portion, the multiple shell portions may beheld in fixed relation to each other through at least one latch assembly30 The shell portions may separate an external environment 19 of thebarbecue grill from an interior 29. Interior 29 of the barbecue grillmay house one or more food support members 40 and one or more fuelsupport members 50. A barbecue grill, including the grill body 20 andstructures associated with it, may be supported on grill support 60.

As shown in FIG. 1, a grill body 20 may include a first shell portion 21and a second shell portion 22. The first and second shell portions maybe constructed of any material suitable for use in containing hightemperatures and combusting pellet fuel. For example, in an illustratedembodiment, the shell portions are constructed of steel. The first andsecond shell portions may be held in fixed relation to one another by atleast one latch assembly 30. Each shell portion 21, 22 may have anexterior surface 24 and an interior surface 25. Surfaces 24, 25 may belocations to which are attached a number of accessories and/or othercomponents of the barbecue grill. For example, a shell portion 21 mayhave attached to it one or more of a handle 23, and/or a thermometer 27,and/or a vent assembly 28, and/or any other appropriate barbecue grillcomponent. Although shown as defining a roughly cylindrical andhemispherical grill body 20, first and second shell portions 21, 22 maydefine any appropriate space. For example, grill body 20 could bespherical, as in a second disclosed embodiment (shown in FIG. 5-7), oran ovoid shape, or cube shaped, or any other suitable design.

As noted above, a number of shell portions 21, 22 may be held in fixedrelation to each other by at least one latch assembly 30. In anillustrated embodiment, there may be three latch assemblies 30 spacedequidistant about a periphery of the barbecue grill body 20. Each latchassembly 30 may include an external latch portion 31 and an internallatch portion 32. Each latch assembly 30 may be fixed at leasttemporarily to a shell portion through welding, or adhesion, orscrewing, or any other appropriate fastening technique. In theillustrated embodiment, latch assembly 30 may be held to a shell portion22 through a plurality of rivets that span from an exterior surface 24to an interior surface 25 of the shell portion. In a case where thegrill body 20 is composed of an upper shell portion 21 and a lower shellportion 22, a given latch assembly 30 may hold the upper and lower shellportions in fixed relation by removably hooking a portion of the latchassembly of the lower shell portion over a shell lip 26 included on theupper shell portion. Alternatively, or in addition, upper and lowershell portions 21, 22 may be held fixedly through a design featureincluded in the shell portions, such as a tongue-and-groove arrangement.

As noted above, an interior 29 of grill body 20 may house a food supportmember 40. The food support member may have an upper surface 41 and alower surface 42. To support food over a heat source, food supportmember may include a number of grill elements 44 separated by spaces 43.In a typical embodiment, spaces 43 may be much larger than grillelements 44, providing a substantially open structure upon which tosupport food items. In this way, there may be a minimal amount ofheat-deflecting material between a food item 300 placed upon the foodsupport member and a pellet fuel source 100 providing cooking heat frombelow. In a typical embodiment, the food support member may be made of asteel material, where the grill elements 44 are configured asnarrow-gauge steel rods, or tines. Of course, any one of many possiblestructures may be used as a food support. Food support member 40 mayrest against an interior surface of the grill body, or it may besupported by internal portions 32 of latch assemblies 30, as shown.

Food on food support member 40 may be cooked over heat supplied bypellet fuel 100. Pellet fuel 100 may be supported in an interior space29 of grill body 20 by a fuel support member 50. Fuel support member 50may have a fuel support body 51 having openings 52 (shown most clearlyin FIG. 4). Fuel support member 50 may be constructed of any materialsuitable for supporting the pellet fuel when the fuel is combusting at ahigh temperature. For example, in an illustrated embodiment, fuelsupport member 50 is constructed of a steel support material. Openings52 in the fuel support body may bridge from an upper surface 53 to alower surface 54 of the fuel support member and so may provide the fuelsupport member with a “perforated” appearance (seen in more detail inFIG. 4). A fuel support member having perforate construction may allowair to more easily reach fuel 100 supported thereon. Openings 52 in fuelsupport member body 51 may also provide a route for pellet ash 200 fromfully-combusted portions of pellet fuel 100 to move or fall away fromthe pellet fuel during cooking. Pellet ash 200 may then collect upon aheat shield 80 for at least temporary storage before being collectedand/or discarded. In an alternative embodiment, shown in FIGS. 5-7,pellet ash 200 may collect along a bottom surface of a lower shellportion 22 for at least temporary storage before being collected and/ordiscarded.

Fuel support 50 may be supported in an interior space 29 of the grillbody 20 by resting upon an inner lip 57 of a fuel platform 56. Fuelplatform 56, in turn, may be fastened to an interior surface 25 of oneof the shell portions 21, 22 of the grill body 20. Fuel platform 56 mayrest against an inner surface of the grill body, or it may be fastenedtemporarily or permanently to an inner surface of the grill body. Forexample, fuel platform may be welded to an inner surface of the grillbody. Any appropriate fastening technique may be used which allows thecombined fuel platform 56 and fuel support 50 to support the pelletfuel.

As noted, fuel support 50 may rest upon a fuel platform lip 57, whichmay be a sub-region of the fuel platform. The fuel platform lip 57 maybe separated from the rest of the fuel platform by a fuel holding ring55. Fuel holding ring 55 may function to contain a mass of pellet fuel100 as it sits on a fuel support 50. For example, if fuel support 50 isplaced into the grill prior to the addition of the pellet fuel, fuelholding ring 55 may prevent the pellet fuel from spreading about theentirety of the fuel platform 56 when the pellet fuel is placed into thegrill.

Fuel support 50 may be placed separately into a barbecue grill, or itmay be included as a portion of a larger assembly. As shown in FIG. 1,fuel support member 50 may be attached permanently, semi-permanently, ortemporarily to a connection rod 47. Connection rod 47 may likewise haveattached to it a heat shield 80 which may be used to catch pellet ash200 as it falls from a pellet fuel 100. Fuel support 50 and heat shield80 may be held to the rod through any appropriate means when provided asa singular assembly. For example, in the illustrated embodiment, heatshield 80 and fuel support may be welded to the connection rod. Heatshield 80, like fuel support member 50, may be constructed of anymaterial suitable for supporting the pellet fuel ash when the ash isderived from pellet fuel combusting at a high temperature, and fordeflective hot sparks that may be thrown off the pellet fuel. Forexample, in an illustrated embodiment, heat shield 80 is constructed ofsteel deflective material. Connection rod 47 may have an included rodhandle 48, which may be used to place the connection rod, and anyassociated support and/or shield, into the grill.

As noted earlier, a barbecue grill body 20 may be supported by at leastone grill support 60. In an illustrated embodiment, the grill support 60may be merely the lowest portion of the barbecue grill body 20 whoseonly specialized supporting structure is a flaring at the lowest portionof the grill body. The grill support 60 may be configured to have ahollow or tubular construction. With a grill support having a hollowconstruction, it may be the case that an interior portion 29 of grillbody 20 may be in fluid communication with an outside atmosphere 19through one or more air inlets 61 formed in the grill support. Such ahollow configuration of a grill support 60, including one or moreassociated air inlets 61, may function to provide extra air from theoutside atmosphere to the interior of the grill body 20, facilitatingcombustion of pellet fuel 100.

In providing for relatively free air movement through air inlets 61,grill support 60 may likewise allow pellet fuel ash or sparks tolikewise pass through the air inlets. To retard the flow of ash orsparks through air inlets 61, heat shield 80 may be placed in theinterior of the grill body, as shown, such that it may catch any fallenash from pellet fuel 100. In addition, judicious placement of heatshield 80 may prevent sparks or heated air from exiting the one or moreair inlets 61. A such, heat shield 80 may also be referred to as adeflective member, in that it may deflect objects that may be on a pathto exit from the interior 29 of the grill to the exterior 19 of thegrill via any of the air inlets 61.

FIG. 2 shows a view of a pellet-fired barbecue grill that lacks, or hashad removed, an upper shell portion 21, leaving the second, lower, shellportion 22 and structures that may be associated with it. As shown inFIG. 2, a food support member 40 may be disposed vertically above a fuelsupport member 50. Both the food support member 40 and the fuel supportmember 50 may rest against an inner surface 25 of the second shellportion 22. Alternatively, one or more of the food support member 40 andthe fuel support member 50 may be supported by a structure attached to ashell portion of the grill. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, foodsupport member 40 may be supported by internal portions 32 of aplurality of latch assemblies 30 while fuel support member 50 may besupported on a fuel platform lip 57.

Pellet fuel 100 may rest upon fuel support member 50 during combustionof the pellet fuel. Openings 52 (see FIG. 4) in the fuel support membermay provide not only for the relatively free flow of air to the pelletfuel, but also for the disposal of pellet ash 200. For example, duringthe process of combustion, pellet fuel 100 may be incompletely consumed,leaving behind an ash residue 200. Ash residue 200 may initiallyaccumulate on upper surface of the fuel support member but may alsoperiodically fall through openings 52, then through fuel platformopening 75 in fuel platform 56 (see also FIG. 1) and collect upon aprovided heat shield 80. Alternatively, pellet ash 200 may collect on aninterior surface 25 of second shell portion, 22 (see FIGS. 5-7).

As noted, pellet fuel 100 may be combusted using air that may beprovided from an external environment 19 of the grill body. Where grillsupport 60 is configured with a substantially hollow construction, airmay pass from outside to inside the barbecue through the one or more airinlets 61. However, such a configuration of grill support 60 may carrythe risk that pellet ash 200, or a spark from pellet fuel 100, mayescape through one or more of the air inlets to the outside of thebarbecue. Escape of ash from an interior to an exterior of the barbecuemay result in a mess that must be cleaned up after use of the barbecue.In addition, escape of ash or sparks from the interior space of thebarbecue may carry the risk of a fire, if there are any combustiblematerials nearby, or it may carry the risk of personal injury, ifsomeone is present near the barbecue and is contacted by the spark orash. To prevent the escape of at least ash and sparks from the interiorof the barbecue, the grill may be configured with a heat shield 80present in a lower portion of the grill body 20. Although shown in FIGS.1 and 2 as having a roughly circular shape, a heat shield 80 may takeany shape suitable for preventing objects from entering the grillsupport 60 and potentially escaping from the grill.

FIG. 3 presents a top view of a second shell portion 22 of a barbecue,such that a possible construction of a fuel platform may be more clearlyseen. A fuel platform 56 may serve to obstruct the passage of airthrough most of one portion of the grill body. As such, fuel platform 56may force most air entering the grill body to pass through fuel platformopening 75 where, in the fully-assembled grill, pellet fuel may besupported by fuel support 50 (see FIGS. 1 and 2). In the illustratedembodiment, a connection rod and its associated structures may be placedvertically into the grill body, such that a periphery of any associatedfuel support may rest on an upper surface of the fuel platform at fuelplatform lip 57. As shown, the grill body, fuel platform, and otherstructures, may be configured with roughly circular cross-sectionalshapes, but other designs are possible. For example, the grill body andassociated structures may have square cross-sections, or rectangularcross-sections, etc. In any case a heat shield 80 may take any suitableshape for passing through platform opening 75 and being suspended belowfuel platform 56 to prevent the escape of ash or sparks or othermaterials from an interior of the barbecue to the exterior of thebarbecue. In this construction, a spark guard may have similarcharacteristics to a food support member and a fuel support member,which may be removed from an interior of the barbecue for cleaning, orstorage, or for any other reason.

FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a fuel support member for use with thedescribed pellet-fired barbecue. In an illustrated embodiment, fuelsupport member 50 may have a “perforated” appearance, with a fuelsupport member body 51 being of generally solid configuration butincluding a number of openings 52. As seen in FIG. 1, openings 52 mayform a passage from a lower surface 54 to an upper surface 53 of thefuel support member. Openings 52 may, therefore, provide a way forintake air to pass from one or more air inlets 61 in a grill support 60(FIGS. 1-3) to a pellet fuel disposed on an upper surface of the fuelsupport member. In an illustrated embodiment, openings 52 are sized suchthat a minor portion of the fuel support member is configured as openspace. Such a construction of fuel support member 50 may restrict anamount of intake air that may pass through the one or more air inletsand reach pellet fuel placed on the fuel support member. In apellet-fueled barbecue, a design of a fuel support member withrestricted airflow characteristics, as shown and described, may providea pellet fuel with favorable combustion characteristics. For example, itmay be that a user of the barbecue would use a pellet fuel as a heatsource that can reach a desired cooking temperature rapidly, wouldcombust at the desired cooking temperature for enough time to cook ameal, and would be finished combusting at the desired cookingtemperature in a relatively short amount of time. Thus, in anillustrated embodiment, openings 52 of a fuel support member 50 may beapproximately 8 percent of the total area of a fuel support member 50 toallow for the described desired burn characteristics. It may be that anumber of replaceable fuel support members could be provided for a givenbarbecue, for use with a number of types of pellet fuel, each havingdifferent desired combustion characteristics. In that case, openings 52may be configured as any percent of the total area of the fuel supportmember that provides for the described burn characteristics for a givenpellet fuel. As can be seen from the figures, a design of grill bodyshell portions 21, 22 may also contribute to the modulation of the burncharacteristics of a given pellet fuel. For example, in the illustratedembodiment, shell portions 21, 22 are substantially imperforate. Thismay allow an only source of combustion air to be from one or more airinlets in a grill support 60 and to be modulated by a percentage of openspace present in a fuel support member 50.

When used in a grill shown in the illustrated embodiments, a pellet fuelused with the disclosed fuel support member may reach optimal cookingtemperature after approximately 10 minutes of combustion; it may besubstantially completely combusted in approximately 60 minutes. Incontrast, it may be that configuring the fuel support structure 50 witha more open, grill-like structure, as shown for one embodiment of a foodsupport member 40, may be problematic for using pellet fuel as a heatsource for cooking. As one possible difficulty, it may be that asubstantially open fuel support member could allow the pellet fuel tocombust too quickly, and at too high a temperature, for use as a cookingfuel. As another possible difficulty, it may be that a more open fuelsupport member could allow a partially-combusted fuel pellet to fallthrough the fuel support member and come to rest on a bottom interiorsurface of the second, lower shell portion or on an associated heatshield; each partially-combusted fuel pellet portion may thus becomeruined for future use and the remaining combined pellet fuel may notprovide sufficient heat for cooking any provided food.

FIGS. 5-7, and the following text, present a second embodiment of agrill according to the present disclosure. In FIGS. 5-7, and thefollowing text, the elements of the second embodiment are numberedsimilarly to the previously-discussed elements of the first embodiment,with the addition of a preceding “1.” For example, the grill of thefirst embodiment is denoted “10,” while the grill of the secondembodiment is denoted “110.” FIG. 5 depicts a second embodiment of abarbecue grill, 110, the grill being designed according to the detailsof the present disclosure. In this second illustrated embodiment, grill110 may be constructed with a grill body 120 having a generallyspherical shape. As in the first embodiment, where the shell includesmore than one shell portion, the multiple shell portions 121, 122 may beheld in fixed relation to each other through at least one latch assembly130. The shell portions may separate an external environment 119 of thebarbecue grill from an interior 129. Interior 129 of the barbecue grillmay house one or more food support members 140 and one or more fuelsupport members 150. A barbecue grill, including the grill body 120 andstructures associated with it may be supported on one or more grillsupports 160. In the illustrated second embodiment, there may be aplurality of grill supports 160 configured as legs.

As shown in FIG. 5, and in common with the first embodiment, a fuelsupport member having perforate construction may be present in the grillinterior 129. Fuel support member 150 may rest against an interiorsurface 125 of a lower shell portion 122 of the grill. Alternatively,fuel support member 150 may be removably or irremovably fastened to theinterior surface of the grill. Openings 152 in fuel support member 150may allow air to easily reach fuel 100 supported thereon. Openings 152in fuel support member body 151 may also provide a route for pellet ash200 from fully-combusted portions of pellet fuel 100 to move or fallaway from the pellet fuel during cooking. Pellet ash 200 may thencollect along a bottom surface of lower shell portion 122 for at leasttemporary storage before being collected and/or discarded.

As noted earlier, a barbecue grill body 120 may be supported by at leastone grill support 160. In the second illustrated embodiment, thebarbecue grill body is supported by three legs 160 attached to aneternal surface 124 of lower shell portion 122. Legs 160 may be spacedsuch that they are attached away from the lowest point of the lowershell portion 122, and they may be spaced equidistant about theperiphery of the lower shell portion at the level they are attached(seen more clearly in FIG. 7). As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, each leg maybe of tubular construction, such that an air inlet 161 of the grill at aproximal end of each leg may be operatively connected to a distal end162 of the same leg through an open space. As such, the shape of eachleg may be defined by both an outer surface 163 and an inner surface 164of the leg.

It may be that not every leg used to support grill body 120 isconfigured with a hollow or tubular construction. With a leg having ahollow construction, such that an air inlet 161 of the grill and adistal end 162 of the leg are operatively connected by open space, itmay be the case that an interior portion 129 of grill body 120 may be influid communication with an outside atmosphere 119 through the openspace of the hollow leg. Such a hollow configuration of each leg mayfunction to provide for air movement from the outside atmosphere to theinterior of the grill body 120, facilitating combustion of pellet fuel100.

To provide for free air flow through a hollow leg grill support 160,each such leg may be provided with a leg foot 170 and/or a heat shield180. A leg foot 170 may be located at a distal portion 162 of a leggrill support 160 relative to a grill body 120. A leg foot 170 mayfunction to distribute the weight of the barbecue grill over a greatersurface area of the ground, which may in turn prevent each leg grillsupport 160 from digging into the ground with a resulting possibility ofobstruction of free air flow through the leg. Leg foot 170 may also workin a more general manner in preventing foreign objects from obstructinga distal end 162 of the leg. Much as a leg foot 170 may protect a distalend 162 of a leg 160, heat shield 180 may function to protect an airinlet 161 at the junction of the grill body 120 and each leg 160 fromthe entry of foreign objects. Each heat shield 180 may be mounted to aninternal surface 125 of one portion of the grill body, such that theheat shield maintains fixed placement near an air inlet 161 from a leg160 with which it is associated.

FIG. 6 shows a view of a pellet-fired barbecue grill that lacks, or hashad removed, an upper shell portion 121, leaving the second, lower,shell portion 122 and structures that may be associated with it. Asshown in FIG. 6, a food support member 140 may be disposed verticallyabove a fuel support member 150. Both the food support member 140 andthe fuel support member 150 may rest against an inner surface 125 of thesecond shell portion 122. Alternatively, one or more of the food supportmember 140 and the fuel support member 150 may be supported by astructure attached to the second shell portion. For example, as shown inFIG. 6, food support member 140 may be supported by internal portions132 of a plurality of latch assemblies 130.

As noted earlier, pellet fuel 100 may be combusted using air that may beprovided from an external environment 119 of the grill body. In anembodiment of the grill 100 where one or more legs 160 have a tubularstructure, air may pass from outside 119 to inside 129 the grill throughthe one or more hollow legs. However, such a configuration of legs 160may carry the risk that pellet ash 200, or a spark from pellet fuel 100,may escape through one or more of the legs to the outside of thebarbecue. Escape of ash from an interior 129 to an exterior 119 of thebarbecue may result in a mess that must be cleaned up after use of thebarbecue. In addition, escape of ash or sparks from the interior spaceof the barbecue may carry the risk of a fire, if there are anycombustible materials nearby, or it may carry the risk of personalinjury, if someone is present near the barbecue and is contacted by thespark or ash. To prevent the escape of at least ash and sparks from theinterior 129 of the barbecue, an interior surface 125 of a shell portionmay be configured with one or more heat shields 180 present near an airinlet 161 of each tubular leg 160 where it meets shell portion 122. Inthe second illustrated embodiment, legs 160 may be attached along alower surface of a second, lower, shell portion of the barbecue and aheat shield 180 may be positioned just above each air inlet 161.Although shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 as having a roughly rectangularperimeter, each heat shield 180 may take any shape suitable forpreventing objects from falling, or being placed, into each of the airinlets 161.

FIG. 7 presents a top view of a second shell portion 122 of a barbecue,such that a possible relative placement of heat shields 180, air inlets161, and legs 160 may be more clearly seen. A heat shield 180 may alsobe described as a deflective member, as some portion of its function maybe to deflect objects that may be on a path to enter a given air inlet161. In the second illustrated embodiment, each heat shield 180 isassociated with a single leg 160, such that the heat shield obstructsaccess to the leg from above. As shown, each heat shield, or deflectivemember, may be configured with a roughly rectangular shape, but otherdesigns are possible. For example, a heat shield 180 may be a singleobject of a roughly ring-like constrution and may be mounted to aninterior surface 125 of the shell portion at a level just above theposition of attachment of legs 160. One or more heat shields 80 may takeany suitable shape for preventing the escape of ash or sparks or othermaterials from an interior 129 of the barbecue to the exterior of thebarbecue. Also, as shown in FIG. 7, each heat shield 180 may be mounteddirectly to the interior surface of the second shell portion. However,each heat shield 180 may be placed permanently or transiently in aprotective configuration with the one or more legs. For example, heatshields 180 may be welded to an interior of the shell portion, or theymay be riveted to the shell portion, or they may be screwed to theinterior of the shell portion. Alternatively, if a heat shield isconfigured with appropriate dimensions, it may rest against an interiorof the shell portion and reside there only temporarily. In thisconstruction, a heat shield may have similar characteristics to a foodsupport member and a fuel support member, which may be removed from aninterior of the barbecue for cleaning, or storage, or for any otherreason. FIG. 7 shows, for example, a second shell portion 122 of abarbecue having removable food and fuel supports, such as shown in FIGS.1, 2, 5, and 6, with the food and fuel supports having been removed toshow a lower interior surface 125 of the second shell portion 122.

Although the present invention has been shown and described withreference to the foregoing operational principles and preferredembodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art thatvarious changes in form and detail may be made without departing fromthe spirit and scope of the invention. The present invention is intendedto embrace all such alternatives, modifications and variances that fallwithin the scope of the appended claims.

It is believed that the disclosure set forth above encompasses multipledistinct inventions with independent utility. While each of theseinventions has been disclosed in its preferred form, the specificembodiments thereof as disclosed and illustrated herein are not to beconsidered in a limiting sense as numerous variations are possible. Thesubject matter of the inventions includes all novel and non-obviouscombinations and subcombinations of the various elements, features,functions and/or properties disclosed herein. Similarly, where theclaims recite “a” or “a first” element or the equivalent thereof, suchclaims should be understood to include incorporation of one or more suchelements, neither requiring nor excluding two or more such elements.

1. A cooking apparatus comprising: a housing, the housing comprising: a shell defining an interior and an exterior, wherein the shell includes an upper portion and a lower portion, and further wherein at least the lower portion has a substantially imperforate surface construction; a food support member; and a pellet fuel support member, wherein the food support member and the pellet fuel support member are disposed above a lower surface of the housing; and at least one housing support, wherein the at least one housing support includes at least one air inlet to the interior of the shell.
 2. The cooking apparatus of claim 1, further including a deflective member positioned relative to the air inlet to at least substantially obstruct access to the air inlet from the interior of the housing.
 3. The cooking apparatus of claim 2, wherein the at least one housing support is an extension of the lower portion of the shell, and wherein each air inlet is configured as an opening in the lower portion of the shell.
 4. The cooking apparatus of claim 1, wherein the at least one grill support is configured as at least one hollow leg mounted to the lower portion of the shell such that an interior space of the hollow leg is functionally continuous with the interior of the housing via the air inlet and with an outside environment via an opening in the at least one leg.
 5. The cooking apparatus of claim 4, wherein the interior of the shell includes a deflective member positioned relative to the air inlet to at least substantially obstruct access to the air inlet from the interior of the housing.
 6. The cooking apparatus of claim 5, wherein the opening in the at least one hollow leg is positioned at an end of the hollow leg distal from the shell.
 7. The cooking apparatus of claim 6, wherein the at least one hollow leg includes a removable covering obstructing at least a portion of the opening in the hollow leg.
 8. The cooking apparatus of claim 1, wherein the portions of the shell together describe a substantially semi-spherical shape.
 9. The cooking apparatus of claim 8, wherein the at least one grill support is configured as at least one hollow leg, and further wherein the at least one leg is mounted to the lower portion of the shell such that an interior space of the hollow leg is functionally continuous with the interior of the housing via the air inlet and with an outside environment via an opening in the at least one leg.
 10. The cooking apparatus of claim 9, wherein the interior of the shell includes a deflective member positioned relative to the air inlet to at least substantially obstruct access to the air inlet from the interior of the housing.
 11. The cooking apparatus of claim 10, wherein the opening in the at least one hollow leg is positioned at an end of the hollow leg distal from the shell.
 12. The cooking apparatus of claim 11, wherein the at least one hollow leg includes a removable covering obstructing at least a portion of the opening in the hollow leg.
 13. A cooking apparatus comprising: a housing, the housing comprising: means for supporting food in an interior space of the housing; and means for supporting pellet fuel in the interior space of the housing, wherein the means for supporting food and the means for supporting pellet fuel are displaced vertically from a lower surface of the housing; and means for supporting the housing above a surface, wherein at least a portion of the means for supporting the housing provides an air inlet for the interior of the housing.
 14. The cooking apparatus of claim 13, further including a means for deflecting wherein the means for deflecting is positioned relative to the air inlet to at least substantially obstruct access to the air inlet from the interior of the housing.
 15. A cooking apparatus comprising: a housing, the housing comprising: a shell defining an interior and an exterior, wherein the shell includes an upper portion and a lower portion each having a substantially imperforate construction and capable of being held in relatively fixed placement by a plurality of fastening devices; a food support at least temporarily mounted in the interior of the shell, wherein the food support has a substantially open and planar configuration defined by a plurality of crosspieces mounted to a frame; a fuel support at least temporarily mounted in the interior of the shell, wherein the fuel support has a substantially planar configuration defined by a substantially imperforate support material; and a deflective member at least temporarily mounted in the interior of the shell, wherein the deflective member has a substantially planar configuration defined by an at least substantially imperforate deflective material, and further wherein the deflective member and the fuel support are mounted on a connection rod in a connection rod assembly such that the deflective member is disposed vertically below the fuel support on the connection rod; and at least one housing support, wherein at least one housing support is configured with an air inlet sized suitably to allow fluid communication of air between the interior and the exterior of the shell to such an extent that combustion of a pellet fuel supported on the fuel support can occur. 